Toilet seats and lids therefor



'Dec. 23, 1969 A. B. THOMAS 3,484,876

TOILET SEATS AND LIDS THEREFOR Filed Nov. 2, 1966 W W 72% V// /A fl///// I??? Q "a F l G 5.

IN V ENTOR.

Anna Belle Thomas BY 65W aiwmg United States Patent i 3,484,876 TOILET SEATS AND LIDS THEREFOR Anna Belle Thomas, 471 Alexander Palm Road, Boca Raton, Fla. 33432 Filed Nov. 2, 1966, Ser. No. 591,618 Int. Cl. A47k 13/00 U.S. Cl. 4--234 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A toilet seat and/or cover provided in its upper face With a depression or opening filled with a plastic material containing an ornament. The ornament is visible from above the top of the seat or cover, and when the depression is an aperture extending completely through the seat or cover, the ornament may be visible from either above the top or below the bottom of the seat or cover. The material in which the ornament is embedded may be transparent.

This invention relates to toilet seats and more particularly to toilet seat lids and has for one of its objects the provision of means by which a toilet seat lid or a toilet seat can be ornamented and its appearance greatly enhanced.

At the present time there is a tendency on the part of homemakers to beautify the bath room and to render more attractive the fittings therein and thereby reduce the severity of appearance of the same. This tendency has reached the toilet seat and various removable fabric coverings are being used on toilet seat lids primarily for decorative purposes. While such devices admittedly enhance the appearance of the toilet seat lid they are not, unless constantly changed, washed and replaced, particularly sanitary.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a toilet seat cover or lid in which a sanitary, integral form of decorative ornamentation will be employed, such ornamentation or decoration actually forming a part of the lid or cover, the same requiring no change or removal and being as lasting as the cover or lid itself.

It is an object of the invention to provide a means for decorating or embellishing a toilet seat lid or the seat itself by means of an inlay or insert of embedded ornamentation in the body of the lid or seat, thereby not only enhancing the appearance of the lid or seat but providing for a permanent type of ornamentation therefor.

More particularly, in one of its embodiments, the invention comprises a toilet seat lid provided with a central depression or well filled with a plastic material forming a central panel in the lid. Such panel contains an embedded ornament or a plurality of ornaments. The panel can be formed by depositing fluent plastic in the well, or by separately producing a suitable panel in a mold apart from the lid, and which panel so produced can be adhesively or otherwise securely fitted infthe well. The plastic may, if desired, be transparent or translucent and the ornament or ornaments therein can be opaque to permit the ornaments to be visible whether the lid is in a raised or lowered position.

While the above description relates to the lid rather than the seat proper, it will be apparent from the following description, that the invention can well be applied to the seat proper.

With these and other objects to be hereinafter set forth in view, I have devised the arrangement of parts to be described and more particularly pointed out in the claims appended hereto.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein an illustrative embodiment of the invention is disclosed:

"ice

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a toilet seat lid embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view, taken substantially on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view through a part of the lid, showing one manner in which an ornament may be embedded in the plastic insert;

FIG. 4 is a similar sectional view, showing another manner in which an ornament can be embedded in the plastic insert;

FIG. 5 is a view, looking at the under side of the lid and showing how the inlayed ornament is visible when a transparent plastic is used as the inserted panel; and

FIG. 6 shows the invention as applied to a toilet seat as distinguished from a lid.

Referring to the drawing and more particularly to FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, there is therein shown a toilet seat lid 1 of generally conventional form and which may be composed of wood, plastic or of any of the known materials employed in toilet seat cover construction. Formed in the top face of the lid is a central depression or well 2 into which is an inserted panel 3 composed of plastic and which may be a plastic of the polyester or other suitable kind. Embedded in and maintained by the plastic panel 3 is ornamentation 4 which may be composed of a single ornament or a plurality of ornaments. These ornaments may be of any suitable material and that herein shown is merely illustrative since it is apparent that an almost endless'number of different ornaments may be,

used.

The inserted panel 3 may be produced in numerous ways. It can be produced by molding the fluent plastic in the well or depression 2 around the ornament 4 that is resting upon the floor 5 of the well as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, or the plastic may be caused to flow around the ornament to embed and enclose it so that the ornament will not be resting upon the floor of the well, but will be floating in the surrounding .plastic material as is shown in FIG. 4. The plastic, when extended over the top of the ornament as at 6 should be of the transparent or translucent kind so that the ornament will be visible through it. Also, if the plastic material is transparent and it is inserted in an opening 12 extending clear through the lid, rather than in a well in the lid, the ornament can be made visible from both the top of the lid or from the bottom 7 as shown in FIG. 5. That is to say, the ornament will be visible regardless or Whether the lid is in a lowered or raised position.

The plastic used is one which is preferably tough and wear resistant and may be any one of the types which are impervious to detergents, chemicals, light and heat so that the lid can be scrubbed, cleansed and generally treated in any way in which the conventional toilet lid is treated without affecting the inserted panel and the ornament therein, and which for all intents and purposes form an integral part of the lid.

Instead of the plastic being molded directly in the lid, the same may be molded around a suitable ornament or inserted and the panel thus prepared can then be inserted in the well or lid opening and adhesively or otherwise permanently or perhaps removably mounted therein.

The inserted panel can be, if desired so mounted in the lid that it can be removed when required and easily replaced although it is contemplated that this will rarely be required unless a purchaser wishes a change in the ornamentation of the lid. If the ornaments embedded in the panel are exposed on the top face of the lid as in FIG. 3 for example, a transparent protective coating may be used over the panel and particularly over the portion of the ornament that is exposed.

While I have herein described the invention as being applied to a toilet seat lid, the same may be applied to a seat 8 as shown for example in FIG. 6, wherein the colored stripe 9 is an example of a form of plastic ornamentation provided in a groove formed in the seat. Many other types of ornamentation for a seat are possible.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that a useful and decorative form of permanent ornamentation for toilet seat lids and seats has been herein shown and described. The appearance of the lid and/or seat is materially enhanced by a permanent form of decoration; the lid and/or the seat and the decorative material embodied in it provide for a permanent, integral structure and one which can be Washed and cleaned and the seat and/or lid kept sanitary and usable in the conventional manner. The designs herein shown are merely illustrative since many other designs, colorings and alterations in the described structure are as readily possible Without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What I claim is:

1. A toilet seat lid having a substantially planar top face and a substantially planar bottom face, provided in its said top face with a contained ornamented visible panel said lid having a depression in said top face filled with a plastic material containing an ornament, which ornament is visible when said lid is in a lowered position, said depression being centrally located and in the form of a Well.

2. A toilet seat lid according to claim 1 in which said ornament is embedded in said plastic material and is visible from above said top face of said lid.

3. A toilet seat lid according to claim 1 wherein said depression consists of an opening extending completely through said lid, with said plastic material being transparent and said ornament being visible through said transparent plastic material from above the said top face and from below the said bottom face of said lid.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 239,770 4/1881 Guild 1615 654,301 7/1900 Barnes 4-234 661,441 11/1900 Bush 4--234 749,083 1/ 1904 McElroy 4234 1,694,847 12/ 1928 Donaldson 1615 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,194,905 5/1959 France.

LAVERNE D. GEIGER, Primary Examiner D. MASSENBERG, Assistant Examiner 

